The Only Constant Is Change
by anticute
Summary: Pepper understands that entropy increases in the Universe. She is just becoming more and more frighteningly   aware of its increasing in...this particular way. And she blames Tony.


maybe i'm just a total fanatic for watching the movies a million times, but in the scene with Pepper & Christine, i noticed that her shirt is slightly unbuttoned - showing that gorjus neck Gwyneth has.

then when she goes down to the shop with her first scene with Tony - her shirt is buttoned up all the way, or her shirt is closed up. yeah. i'm a creepr.

**THE ONLY CONSTANT IS CHANGE**

/pseudonymosity

_She understands that entropy increases in the Universe. _

_She is just becoming more and more frighteningly aware of its increasing in...this particular way. _

_And she blames Tony._

* * *

><p>She knows it is probably useless, but Pepper tries her best to keep an appearance that will only subject her to a minimum of maybe - just maybe and on a good daybad day depending on Tony's mood - fourteen flirtations a day. Harmless, she concedes, but quite bothersome all the same.

The record of innuendos and other such advances is... Well. Tony kind of breaks his record so often that Pepper has given up (don't look at her like that, she doesn't _like_ that she had to give up) cataloging his flirting overtures. Besides, she only started it to keep track and point out to Tony how inappropriate he was; this was done in beginning of her employment. Unfortunately, Tony's a prick and her reporting his record as part of daily routine-and-reprimand, only proved to encourage him (if encourage was even the right word) and delighted him. Which increased his record.

This used to happen: when lady friend and lustbird had to be taken care of, Pepper often just came as she was - proper, prim, and impeccably well-dressed. Clickity-clack heels, of course. The professional part of her showed as clearly as possible, just so these women wouldn't feel unnecessarily threatened. And if they were threatened - well, that was their issue and would be none of hers. Except, when it was their issue - which was something not as common as one might think - it somehow became her issue. And that was bothersome as well.

After lady friend and lustbird left, Pepper checked herself in the mirror for a minimum of a minute and a half. Not so much out of vanity, but as a precautionary measure. She had to ascertain that the state of her dress was appropriate: shirt buttoned up decently, skirt length modest, pants unwrinkled, and so forth. All so she wouldn't by, any means, invite anything that was...well - uninvited.

Now this is what happens: Pepper still comes to work as she is - proper, prim, and impeccably well-dressed. Clickity-clack heels, of course. However, sometimes (which turns out to be three times a week, she's calculated), she doesn't really get a chance to check herself in the mirror. Because Tony, for whatever reason, is up and about - high energy and and wide grins as he practices how to make his own breakfast.

("Cooking is science, Potts! Rhodey won't help me, at all, with this cooking thing. God, the things he would cook when we had finals... Anyway, Rhodey's mean and JARVIS has been finding me recipes. And he has also wisely advised me: a man should learn how to cook, when in pursuit of a good woman."

She ignores his pointed look towards her, which isn't hard because she's always fixing some Tony-ian disaster from her phone. She wonders if Maria had this difficult of a time handling her husband. Because, in that case, it's more of a Stark-ian disaster. Damn genetics.)

His hands are always moving, after all, so she is now not quite as surprised to see him in the kitchen three mornings of the week.

She is, however, miffed she can't even - for a_ second_, see if she needs to quickly button just one more button, and avoid more than the fourteen flirtations a day. Which, actually, have now become like...just...innumerable moves towards her.

Mainly because Tony's such a kid, he starts by grabbing her hand - never mind that she has contracts for him to look over in that hand - and pulling her to the kitchen to see the most recent Tony-ian culinary disaster. He watches her for those minutes, in which she is simultaneously eating what he's made and telling him the schedule. Minutes that could be used for her routine primping and are now replaced by...by _this_, before he bounds back downstairs to the workshop, the scent of burnt pancakes accompanying him. And freshly-squeezed OJ - pulp still, somehow, on his shirt.

She's convinced that despite his knowledge of all things chemistry and science, he's terrible at cooking because he cannot by any means keep track of time and lacks patience. Both of which command respect in the culinary field. And Tony doesn't take to others wanting his respect very well; he usually is the one demanding it by sheer presence.

Though, he had - one (of many) superbly drunken, drunken night - admitted he did respect some people. Other than save a few geniuses that Tony had to admit were...geniuses, he respected three other people in the world. But that was - again - a superbly drunken, drunken night and she's fairly certain Rhodey and Happy would agree with her.

(Stane, of course, was mentioned that night as one of the respected, but now Stane is one of the respected dead. And she, herself, is resentful of Stane ever having Tony Stark's respect.)

In any case, it is completely Tony to screw up even the most simplest of her methodologies. Now she has taken to making her adjustments at home. Which is useless, because everything gets crumpled on the way as she makes her drive and Tony's pulling her into the kitchen the very moment she enters. Increasing entropy in the Universe has never been more apparent to her.

The most unsettling of Pepper's new understanding of this routine is that Pepper's vague (she semi-lied about giving up; Pepper Potts does not give up) recordkeeping has come to the conclusion that Tony's flirty ways are... Are... Not flirty. No. Well. They are flirty. Goodness gracious, are they.

But in an entirely different way. His advances on her are sometimes not even flirty, really. They're... They are...

Okay. Take for example: his clearing out the space in the living room full of chips and drinks, after a particular night with Rhodey, so that she doesn't have to. Admittedly, he doesn't do it very well, because there are still crumbs, stray candy wrappers, and lone beer pop tabs. It still freaks her out nonetheless.

The list goes on as to Tony-ian things such as that, and she's more and more certain that they aren't flirty. Or is it? (!... !)

She's not really sure. (?... !)

Leave it to Tony make (more) disorder in her life.

* * *

><p>eeeeeeeeeeeeeee - i honestly, honestly didn't think i'd be able to write a tonypepper fic, like ever, 'cause... i mean. look at her. she's WAY too rambly.<p>

i adore Rhodey. i wanted him somewhere in here - 'cause i like my OT3 - the platonic/friendship sort of OT3, not romantic - though i've seen fics that are FANTASTIC in that realm. but when i wrote him in, it was awkward, didn't fit in right. i imagine rhodey is pretty much weirded out by a domestic tony. he's used to seeing oil, grease from car parts (and in the most inopportune moments, smeared red lipstick) on tony's person - but never oil and grease of cooking.

i have way too many fracking one-shots to get done. FIRST. MUST FINISH FINALS :L

_"The only constant is change..."_

**Isaac Asimov**


End file.
